The Royal Marines were formed as part of the Naval Service in 1755. However, it can trace its origins back as far as 28 October 1664, when English soldiers first went to sea to fight the Spanish and prevent them from reaching the fortress of Gibraltar.The Corps underwent a notable change after 1945 however, when the Royal Marines took on the main responsibility for the role and training of the British Commandos. The Royal Marines have an illustrious history, and since their creation in 1942 Royal Marines Commandos have engaged on active operations across the globe, every year, except 1968.Notably they were the first ever military unit to perform an air assault insertion by helicopter, during the Suez Crisis in 1956In 1664 Charles II wanted to ensure that there was a supply of trained ‘sea soldiers’ who could be deployed on Royal Naval ships. He ordered a regiment of 1,200 land soldiers to be prepared for sea service and distributed into His Majesty’s Fleet. They were called ‘the Duke of York and Albany's Maritime Regiment of Foot’. The Regiment of Foot was disbanded and replaced by two sea serving regiments in 1690.
In 1755 a corps of 5,000 marines was established and grouped into 50 companies under 3 divisions; Chatham, Plymouth and Portsmouth. The number of Royal Marine companies increased steadily and the Marines were never again disbanded. The Marines were designated ‘Royal’ by an order of King George III in 1802.
In 1855 the Royal Marine Light Infantry (RMLI) was formed, followed by the Royal Marine Artillery (RMA) in 1859. The RMLI and RMA merged in 1923 to form a single Royal Marine Corps.
